Divers of the Indian Navy who led the search in the sea for six-year-old Aditi have a challenging task.
From the most dangerous tasks in the service of the country to maintenance of the Navy’s craft to participation in humanitarian work, the divers do it all.
Depending on the task, depth, and time, they are always under pressure, literally.
However, the search operation at Lawson’s Bay was not a major one as they did not have to go great depths.
The deeper they go into the sea the more pressure they take because of the need to inhale high pressure gas. The one working with a closed circuit gear breathes pure oxygen and works in clandestine warfare.
If bubbles of his exhaling appear, it is a giveaway undermining the task and him, explains Commander K.S. Dhoot, Officer in-charge of Command Clearance Diving Team (CCDT) at Visakhapatnam during a diving demo.
The very term clearance comes from their role in clearing mines.
Rigorous training
It’s a tough job that needs rigorous 20 weeks of basic training for clearance divers and eight weeks for ship divers.
It is not that one is fit during the training, but one has to be fit all through to carry out his job effectively, says an official, underlining the importance of physical stamina. No wonder, the rate of attrition is 60 per cent and the option for becoming a diver is voluntary.
Notwithstanding it, CCDT feeds Marine Commandos (MARCOS) and saturation divers, who had to undergo six weeks of training onboard diving support vessel INS Nireekshak. CCDT has 60 divers, including four officers, and 90 per cent of them are clearance divers.
INS Nireekshak has 30 to 35 divers.
For any prolonged operation under water, saturation divers are deployed, who come back to the special chambers, called recompression chambers, to keep them under the required pressure. They return to work from the chambers again.
Stronger currents, pressure variation leading to fatal lung damage, oxygen poisoning, and risk from marine life are among the dangers the divers face.
However, visibility is quite poor in Visakhapatnam, and diving is done at noon and assisted by underwater lights.
